Wilson Potteries - Texas Historical Markers on Waymarking.com

John M. Wilson was a preacher who had moved to this part of Texas in 1856 with his family and with more than three slaves. Besides preaching, John M. Wilson began a pottery shop and sold the earthen wares for food storage units to fellow settlers until selling the shop in 1869, during the Souther Reconstruction era. Hiram Wilson, a former slave of John M. Wilson, and two other former slaves began their own pottery shop and made similar earthen pottery jars, but they branded their jars with the company name, H. Wilson & Co.
Hiram Wilson was befriended by the local Baptist minister who encouraged Hiram Wilson to become a preacher too. The goal of Hiram Wilson, the former slave, now a minister and a businessman, was to begin developing an African-American community on land he'd been buying. He called the community Capote and his church was named Capote Baptist Church. The church is still active within this local community.

This TX historical marker is along the widened shoulder area of FM 466, locally called Capote Road, and is placed in front of the property of Capote Baptist Church. The address is 10875 FM 466, Seguine, TX 78155. It is across the street from the junction of Halm Rd. and Capote Rd.


Brief history of the H. Wilson & Co. Pottery and of H Wilson himself:
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Historical significance of Capote Baptist Church:
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Marker Number: 5858 Marker Text: Presbyterian minister John M. Wilson came to this area of Texas in 1856 with his family and slaves. Since earthen vessels were major 19th-century food storage items, Wilson established a pottery kiln in this vicinity in 1860. After Wilson sold his interest in the business in 1869, 3 of his former slaves began their own pottery shop. James, Hiram, and Wallace Wilson, who operated H. Wilson & Co. until 1884, created their own style of pottery and ran a successful business during the Reconstruction Era, when many newly-freed slaves found work only as sharecroppers. (1985)

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Date Logged Log   02/11/2019 WayBetterFinder visited it